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James Bond European Honeymoon {Part One: Czech Republic}

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As a duo with a shared sense of adventure, my boyfriend Winston and I were looking for inspiration for a romantic getaway to Europe. While there’s nothing wrong with finding a desolate beach somewhere to park ourselves sipping drinks for days, some couples like us crave a cocktail of thrills and adventure instead.

We didn’t really know where or how, but as a travel photographer, writer, and jet-set junkie myself, I find my inspiration for my adventures in many different ways. I am always looking for a great story to tell, so it was no surprise that the idea for our next adventure would come to me one night while we were cuddled up in bed watching the James Bond movie, "Casino Royale."

Let’s just say that watching Daniel Craig on the screen is sort of a win-win situation for us both. James Bond, AKA 007 and possibly the world's best-known spy is just a ridiculously sexy character. He gets all the women, the spy gadgets, races the best cars and boats, has friends in high places, and can kick ass like a hero. All the men want to be him and all women want to be one of his many Bond girls.

But what really got to me while watching Casino Royale, was the epic scenery in this film. All of the castles and quaint villages, opulent casinos, luxurious hotels, and Italian coastline gave Winston and I some serious wanderlust wanting to jump into the scenery ourselves. I immediately googled where the scenes of the movie were shot and was surprised to discover that most of them were filmed in the Czech Republic as well as the UK and Italy, even though the movie was supposed to be placed in Montenegro. As an American, the Czech Republic is a country that really hasn’t ever been on my radar to go to, but after seeing its beauty on the movie screen, I knew that an epic idea for our next adventure trip had been born.

“Babe, what if we did a James Bond-themed adventure road trip across the Czech Republic to visit the scenes from Casino Royale? Let’s rent a bad-ass sports car and you could be James Bond!”

Winston’s immediate response was, “Well who would be my other Bond Girls?”

Seriously, such a guy thing to say, but then a light bulb went off! “Wait, Babe, I can be all of your Bond girls! I am going to need some wigs and some amazing outfits, but let’s do some James Bond movie poster-style photo shoots at each location.”

I mean, gorgeous locations, fancy cars, luxurious clothing, and a chance to play dress up with your love? What’s a better way to add some daring, intrigue, mystery and James Bond sexiness to your romantic getaway or Honeymoon! For a couple of adrenaline junkies like ourselves, we knew we had to make this mission happen. In order for "Operation Shaken Not Stirred" to go off without a hitch, we would quickly have to go through a Bond Bootcamp to become more “Bond-like.” Here are some ways that we found to master the art of becoming Bond… James Bond.

Vacation in beautiful places

Whether you are jet setting to The Czech Republic, Monte Carlo, or somewhere local, we knew we would have to figure out the backdrop for our vacation activities, just as Bond would do. So first came some prep and research. We needed to know where to go and how to get there. This is where contacting the Board of Tourism of the Czech Republic turned out to be an invaluable asset. I emailed them our trip idea and not only did they LOVE the concept, but they helped us research the locations, set up English speaking guides and transportation for us to get there, and even helped get us special access to take photos in some of their country’s most elite locations. The trip hadn’t even started and already we were being treated like celebrities!

Dress impeccably

Bond is rarely disheveled and he takes pride in his appearance. Whether it's formal or casual, his clothing is well pressed and tailored to fit. Now that we had help with finding the locations, we would have to look the part. James Bond and his Bond girls are always impeccably dressed. I went and bought some wigs so I could play the role of different Bond girls, but I needed the clothes pull the looks all together. So I contacted celebrity and honeymoon stylist, Caley Rinker, and told her of our idea. Not only did she LOVE the idea, but she agreed to take on our project.

What Caley does as a service is pretty unique and amazing. Not only will she let you dig through her racks of couture gowns and clothing at her studio to borrow, but she will actually shop for you and pull clothing, accessories, and shoes and send them ahead to your hotel or honeymoon destination. You can decide to keep or send the clothing back after your trip. For you honeymooners out there, it’s an amazing service that most newlyweds don’t even think about because they are so focused on the wedding day attire alone. She helped plan out about 10 matching outfits and took care of everything, so we wouldn’t have to travel to Europe with huge trunks of luggage like they did in the olden days. I guess being James Bond DOES have its perks!

Be Sophisticated

Now that Winston and I were set on our locations and looking the part, we now had to ACT the part. We wanted to “Do as Bond would Do” and be able to communicate in foreign languages. By using my Google Translate app, Winston and I learned a few phrases in Czech, French, and Italian so we could get by while on our trip. If nothing else, being able to say the basics like "Hello", “Thank You”, and "How are you?" really helped us a lot on our trip and made people want to help us out in our crazy James Bond mission.

Just like Bond, Winston and I also love to taste a little bit of the good life. We decided we would treat ourselves to decadent meals and fancy cocktails on our trip. Winston even played the part by ordering 007’s signature “shaken-not-stirred” vodka martini wherever we went and I ordered champagne. Adding a little role play to our adventure was so much fun and added another element to our themed trip.

Be Daring

Winston and I aren’t spies, but whenever we have an opportunity in life to try new adventures and flirt with danger, we jump at the chance! We didn’t skydive or bungee jump on this trip, but we did rent a luxury sports car for our shoot and drove through the countryside to nearby castles and along the Italian Riviera. We got on motorcycles and boats, found secret passageways, explored ancient palaces, learned about the history, hiked up into medieval villages, and pretty much tried every adventure that we could and looking sharp while we did it!

Our Mission in The Czech Republic

Finally, after all of the suspense and planning of our James Bond European Adventure, the day had come and Winston and I found ourselves landing at the Prague Airport and jumping in our Bond car to drive to our first set of locations in the beautiful mountain spa town of Karlovy Vary. We didn’t realize that the “Miami Airport Scene” in the movie was actually shot right here at Prague airport, so our Bond-themed movie tour had already begun without us realizing it!

Karlovy Vary

The hour-and-a-half drive out of the city through lush green rolling foothills and spa forests was stunning and once you climb up into the mountains, the windy road brings you back down into one of the most quaint, picturesque cities you will ever visit. The world-famous spa town of Karlovy Vary, also known as “Carlsbad” was founded in 1350 and is a perfectly preserved hidden treasure. The town sits on 15 mineral hot springs that have been proven by centuries to have healing effects when you drink them. You will find tourists and locals alike carrying hand-crafted porcelain cups so they can dip them in the springs and drink them as they stroll through the cobblestone streets.

Karlovy Vary is also famous for hosting the most prestigious film festival in Central Europe every July. This small town of 50,000 gets taken over by film fans and there is live music, food tents, film screenings, and world premiere events all day, every day for about a week. Their most famous hotel, The Grand Hotel Pupp, becomes the film academy headquarters, during this time. This Baroque-style luxury hotel is nestled into the mountainside and is the epitome of what you would think a huge Chalet in the Alps would look like. Because of its aesthetics, it is no surprise that the Grand Hotel Pupp has been the backdrop of many movies over the years like Queen Latifah’s "The Last Holiday," "The Philanthropist," and "Shanghai Knights," but the most famous movie filmed there ever was, of course, James Bond’s "Casino Royale."

Loket

Karlovy Vary is in an area of The Czech Republic known as the West Bohemian Spa Triangle. (Yes, Bohemia is a real place.) In this region is a beautiful village called Loket, which in Czech means “elbow.” This name was given to Loket, because the river that runs through Karlovy Vary flows into Loket and then makes a 90-degree turn right at the castle, like an elbow. You can ride your bike, kayak, or walk along the beautiful gardens and river to get to Loket from Karlovy Vary, but in our case, we took our Bond car and our next change of wardrobe out with us!

The castle scenes and some village scenes of Casino Royale were filmed here. Winston and I toured the medieval castle, had lunch at a centuries-old pub and then chose the location for our next look while on the bridge crossing the river moat into Loket. I put on a short black cropped wig and transformed into the another one of Winston’s bond girls.

This building in the town square of Loket was also featured in Casino Royale, so Winston and I decided to add in our BMW motorcycle into the shot to include this scene that only lasted for about 3 seconds on screen in the movie.

It is impossible to come to the West Bohemian spa triangle without getting spa treatments ourselves. We were staying in the decadent Hotel Imperial which has I think the best view of all of Karlovy Vary as it sits on the top of a mountain overlooking the valley and town below. In fact, you have to take a funicular that burrows through the rock to get down to the town below. The exit of the funicular pops you out right in the heart of Karlovy, just steps from the Grand Hotel Pupp and all of the action of the film festival. This stately hotel has one of the best spas in town and the suites all with 15-foot ceilings were so grand and luxurious. So of course, Bond AKA Winston would be enjoying a post spa-treatment cocktail with one of his Bond girls here.

Before Winston and I left Karlovy Vary, we explored the other spa towns that make up the West Bohemian spa triangle, Mariánské Lázně, and Františkovy Lázně and also the nearby Becov Castle. There is so much history in this place dating back thousands of years and it was fascinating to be combining my love for history, adventure, beauty, photography, and of course romance into one trip!

The entire town of Mariánské Lázně is centered around beautiful gardens and walkways and is even more quiet and peaceful than Karlovy Vary. The lush forests you drive through just to get here adds to the magic and mystery of this town and you feel like you have walked into a time warp. Unlike Karlovy Vary, the mineral springs here are cool but still have healing properties. As you walk around the famous colonnade and pass the singing fountain here, you can sip the mineral-rich waters and enjoy one of the many outdoor bistros! I think this whole region of the Czech Republic near the German border, is a hidden gem and a must-see!

A self-proclaimed jet-setter at heart, Laura has been a globe-trotter from an early age having grown up internationally with two parents that worked for the CIA. Her ability to channel her storytelling into a chic, vibrant perspective, has made her a veteran International photographer, shooting weddings on 6 continents. While on these trips, Laura felt an overwhelming need to tell the stories of the people and experiences she gathered along the way through her lens. Laura has been been published in over 25 publications worldwide and is a Tastemaker/blogger/lead photographer for Novica/National Geographic. Laura also teaches, mentors, and inspires other photographers through her travel workshops and through sharing her experiences on her website (www.lauragrier.com) of the past 16 years of being a Professional Photographer. Follow along on Laura's Journey on Instagram,Facebook, and Twitter.